This Day In History : August 30

1974 Netherlands

Launching of 1st Dutch satellite, ANS, from Vandenberg

The first Dutch satellite, Astronomical Netherlands Satellite (ANS), was launched on August 30, 1974, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, USA. The satellite was a collaborative project between the Netherlands and NASA, designed primarily for X-ray and ultraviolet astronomy. ANS operated successfully in orbit for around 20 months, contributing valuable data to the field of astronomy before its mission ended in June 1976.

Also on This Day in History August 30

Discover what happened on August 30 with HISTORY's summaries of major events, anniversaries,
famous births and notable deaths.

Births on This Day, August 30
  • 1926 Daryl Gates

    American police officer who created the D.A.R.E. Program (Drug Abuse Resistance Education)

  • 1930 Warren Buffett

    American businessman, philanthropist, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, he is considered one of the most successful investors in the world

  • 1907 John William Mauchly

    American engineer and physicist, who with John P. Eckert invented (1946) the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC)

  • 1856 Carle David Tolmé Runge

    German mathematician and physicist

  • 1871 Ernest Rutherford

    New Zealand physicist and father of nuclear physics (Nobel 1908)

Deaths on This Day, August 30
  • 1938 Max Factor

    Polish born American makeup artist and businessman who founded the Max Factor Company

  • 2004 Fred Whipple

    American astronomer (dirty-snowball theory)

  • 1844 Francis Baily

    English astronomer and describer of "Baily's Beads" during solar eclipse

  • 1862 Charles Bernard Desormes

    French physicist and chemist who determined the ratio of the specific heats of gases and the composition of carbon monoxide and carbon disulfide

  • 1928 Wilhelm Wien

    German physicist (laws of motion, Nobel Prize for Physics 1911)

1983

Guion S. Bluford Jr. became the first black American astronaut to travel in space

In 1983, Guion S. Bluford Jr. made history by becoming the first African American astronaut to travel into space. He flew aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger on mission STS-8, which launched on August 30, 1983. This mission marked a significant milestone in NASA's history and for African Americans in the field of space exploration.
1835

Melbourne, Victoria is founded in Australia

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, was founded on August 30, 1835, by settlers from Tasmania (then known as Van Diemen's Land) led by John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner. The area was initially occupied by the indigenous Kulin nation, who had lived in the region for thousands of years. Melbourne eventually became the capital of the state of Victoria and one of Australia's largest and most important cities.
1983

Guion Bluford becomes 1st African-American astronaut in space

Guion Bluford became the first African-American astronaut to travel to space on August 30, 1983, aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger during mission STS-8. His historic journey marked a significant milestone in both space exploration and civil rights history.
2007

NASA spacecraft Voyager 2 crosses the termination shock, where solar and interstellar winds met

Voyager 2 crossed the termination shock, the boundary where solar wind slows down and interacts with interstellar wind, on August 30, 2007. This event marked another significant achievement for NASA's Voyager mission, following Voyager 1's similar milestone in 2004.
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